


The Harmonious Phantom Thief

by Queen_Of_The_French_Fries



Series: PT!Kaede AU [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Crossover Pairings, F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Kaede takes Ren's place, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Phantom Thief Akamatsu Kaede, Protagonist Akamatsu Kaede, kaede gets punched, kamoshida is yucky, no beta we die like men, possibly, still deciding on a ship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:40:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27011383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Queen_Of_The_French_Fries/pseuds/Queen_Of_The_French_Fries
Summary: After taking the bullet for a loved one, Kaede went from an Ultimate student to a criminal living in an attic. Now all she has to do is go a whole year without getting into trouble. Easy, right?Not if the mental shutdowns, long nosed men, Palaces, and talking cats have anything to say about it.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/TBA
Series: PT!Kaede AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2185776
Comments: 18
Kudos: 25





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, I've seen a few Persona crossover fics where the main character is replaced with a different character from another work, and decided to put my own spin on things. The one that inspired me to do it with Danganronpa was "Nothing, but The Truth" by EpicLinkSam on Fanfic.net, so go check that one out please. Now, a few things to note before we begin:
> 
> 1\. Kaede is a different character from Ren (or Akira if that's what you prefer) in a multitude of different ways, and that will have an affect on how characters interact with her. 
> 
> 2\. Kaede will have her own unique Persona and Velvet Room attendant (though, due to the situation in the game, the room itself and the attendant being twins will be the same). 
> 
> 3\. If you couldn't tell by the tags, a pairing is planned, but I keep flip-flopping on which one to stick with. I mostly plan to pair her up with one of the party members (of either gender). There will be at least some slight ship tease with each member of the party for this reason, though I'm leaning towards some characters more than others.
> 
> 4\. You can tell I was tired when writing at some points, I apologize in advance.
> 
> Okay, on to the show.

As she left her piano classes, the young woman noticed a hand waving at her and immediately rushed over. The sight she was greeted with was a girl nearly identical to her. Same blonde hair with a few strands sticking out on the top of their heads resembling an antenna, and the same purple eyes. That being said, it wasn’t like she was looking in a mirror. The biggest difference being…

“Did you cut your hair?” Asked the older of the twins, Kaede, upon noticing her sister’s hair now ended just above her shoulders, whereas it previously went a good few inches past the nape of her neck much like Kaede’s own hair.

“Oh. Well… not myself. Mostly. So you know that guy I met the other day? Well, he told me that I’d look a lot better with short hair, so while you were at piano lessons, I tried to cut my hair, but I messed up and had Mom do the rest.” The younger twin, Miyuki, said. Kaede sighed.

“You’re lucky we have a hairstylist for a mom, Mi-chan. Also, which guy? I swear it’s a new one every two weeks or so.” Kaede swore it was only a matter of time before her sister got hurt in an attempt to impress her current crush. Yet, no matter how much Kaede tried to warn her, Miyuki remained convinced that she was living in a shoujo manga and she was one accidental crash into a guy away from her perfect love story. 

“That’s not true! It’s been a full two months since the last guy!” Miyuki rebutted. 

Kaede snickered, “I’ll make sure you get a world record.” Miyuki immediately shoved her elbow into Kaede’s side, making the latter cough for a good few seconds.

“You’re so quick to make fun of me when you’re just as obsessed with the piano as I am with finding the right guy.” Miyuki pointed out. 

“Well, remind me why Hope’s Peak Academy has an Ultimate Pianist and not a-” Kaede froze. Another thing that set the sisters apart was that Kaede’s musical talent allowed her to have better hearing than most people. So while Miyuki couldn’t hear it, she could.

“Help me!” 

Almost as if her body was put on autopilot, Kaede ran towards the source of the noise as fast as she could, leaving a confused Miyuki in the dust.

“Kae-chan! Home is the other way, you know!?” Miyuki yelled as she chased after her sister. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw a bald man trying to force a woman into his car. 

“Hey! Let go of her!” Kaede shouted. 

“Get out of here, kids… this is none of your concern…” The man briefly glanced at Kaede and Miyuki to glare at them. It was pretty clear that this man was drunk, something that initially made Miyuki take a few steps back, until she noticed Kaede wasn’t backing down. 

“Why you…” Kaede muttered as she began to walk forward. Beginning to panic, Miyuki quickly grabbed Kaede by the shoulders. 

“Don’t act reckless, Kae-chan.” Miyuki whispered.

“But-!”

“I’ll deal with it.” Miyuki let go of Kaede and approached the man. She put a hand on his shoulder and attempted to pull the man off of the woman. When Kaede saw the man lose his balance, she instinctively ran over and pulled Miyuki out of the way of any potential harm. The two sisters and the woman who was previously in danger all flinched when the man collided with the ground. Miyuki even covered her mouth in shock when she saw that he was bleeding. 

“Gr… which one of you did that!?” The man demanded. Upon hearing sirens in the distance, it was Kaede’s turn to panic.

“I-I did!” The words spilled out of Kaede’s mouth before she could even comprehend them. Miyuki looked at her twin in shock.

“Wha-?” She was cut off when Kaede gave her a glare that made her completely freeze. Not that the man would’ve noticed or cared, as he was now focused entirely on Kaede. 

“Damn brat! I’ll sue!”

* * *

  
“..we’ll be arriving at Shibuya shortly.”

Kaede gasped as the announcer’s voice woke her up. She certainly earned a few stares as she took a few deep breaths and wiped drool off her cheek. She sighed upon coming to her senses and remembering her situation.

True to the man’s word, Kaede was sued under the claim that she had assaulted him. How anyone could believe that a high school girl could attack a grown man to the point where he would bleed (especially without a weapon) was beyond her, but apparently he had enough connections to twist the story in his favor. Regardless, to say Kaede’s life was flipped upside down would be a huge understatement. Now, having been sentenced to a year long probation, Kaede was on her way to live with someone she had yet to even meet in person. 

Doing her best to shake her recent memories out of her head, Kaede took her phone out of her backpack and quickly got off the subway. As she left the station, she went to open the GPS app only to notice something… off.

“When did I install this?” Kaede asked herself upon noticing the icon in the middle of the screen. The image was of an eye in front of a red background with black swirls with the eye’s pupil being replaced by a black star. Shaking her head, Kaede figured it was best to just delete this mystery app before holding her finger down on the screen for several seconds. However, instead of being asked if she wished to delete it, the icon expanded until it took up most of the screen. Before she could express any confusion, the world itself seemed to slow down. As she looked around to try and figure out what’s going on… that’s when she saw it.

Standing amongst the frozen crowd was herself. Not Miyuki, not a doppelganger, but herself. Her other self stared at her with an emotionless stare while all Kaede could do was stare back. It was like she wanted to say or do something, but something was holding her still. Then, the other Kaede smiled widely at her counterpart before being engulfed in blue flames. Kaede watched as her silhouette began to change within the flames until she was looking at an entity with glowing eyes. Just as Kaede tried to get a closer look, the display previously before her was gone. She looked down and saw a bubble of text on her phone screen asking if she wanted to delete the mysterious app. 

She selected ‘yes’, took a few moments to slap herself in the face a few times to get what happened out of her head, and entered the address provided to her into the GPS app.

* * *

"Come on…” Kaede said as she rang the doorbell for the third time. Did she have the wrong place? She looked at the piece of paper given to her by her parents and confirmed this was in fact the right address. It was then that Kaede noticed what appeared to be a delivery man. 

“Um, excuse me? Is this where Sojiro Sakura lives?” Kaede asked.

“Hm? Oh, that’s right. Sakura-san is usually at his cafe around this time. It’s located in the back alley and called Leblanc.” The delivery man replied. Kaede smiled and nodded.

“I see. Thank you.” Kaede said before turning on her heel and running off.

* * *

Kaede took a deep breath as she stood in front of the building that, according to the awning above the door, was Cafe Leblanc. 

“Alright, Kaede. First impressions are everything, so make it a good one!” Kaede said to herself before slapping herself in the face in an attempt of self motivation, wincing in pain immediately afterwards. After taking another few moments to compose herself after that, Kaede put on a smile and entered the cafe. There, she saw an elderly couple sitting at one of the tables and a middle aged man with his face buried in a newspaper.

“A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still inside!” Kaede looked at the TV on the other side of the room as the news reporter explained what was apparently the latest in a series of accidents.

 _“Oh yeah… those mental shutdowns people keep talking about…”_ Kaede thought as the elderly couple started speaking. She remembered an exchange between two of her classmates, Kokichi and Shuichi, where the former was convinced that the latter knew the cause of the shutdowns was and was keeping quiet, to which he repeatedly shut down the idea. 

“Hm… Vertical is… the name of a shellfish used for farming pearls…” Kaede was snapped out of her thoughts as her attention was brought to the man with the newspaper. Assuming this was who was going to be her guardian for the next year, Kaede coughed into her sleeve in an attempt to make herself known to the man. “Oh right. They told me that was today.” He said as he put the newspaper down and stood up to face Kaede.

“We’ll be going now. Payment’s on the table.” The elderly man said as he and the elderly woman got up from their seats. 

“Thanks for coming.” Said the man who, according to the information given to Kaede, was named Sojiro Sakura.

“This place is in the back alley, so there’s no worries of a car crashing in here.” The elderly man said.

“A what now?” Sojiro asked.

“There’s been a string of those rampage accidents, you know. I just hope that none happen around here.” The elderly man explained. While Kaede was terrified at the thought of getting injured as a result of one of those accidents, it was outweighed by the relief that at least Miyuki wouldn’t be in that kind of danger. 

“That’s none of my concern.” Sojiro said. With that, the elderly couple left. Sojiro sighed. “Four hours for one cup of joe…” He muttered. With that, he was fully focused on Kaede. 

“So… _you’re_ Kaede?” Sojiro asked. Kaede smiled and nodded. 

“Yep. I’m Kaede Akamatsu. Nice to meet you.” Kaede said, saying the line she rehearsed a bit in her head while on the way to her current location.

“...I see. Well, I’m Sojiro Sakura. You’ll be in my custody for the next year. Gotta say, when I was imagining what kind of unruly kid would show up, this might’ve been the last image to cross my mind.” Sojiro said, causing Kaede’s smile to waver a bit for a second.

“W-Well, I guess looks can be deceiving, huh?” Kaede internally slapped herself for letting herself slip, even after everything had been said and done. At the very least, she was glad at least one person acknowledged how ridiculous the whole situation was. 

“Right…” Sojiro’s tone made it clear that he knew something was up, but he shook his head regardless. “Follow me. I’ll show you where you’ll be staying.” Sojiro said before going over and opening a door in the back of the restaurant. Caught off guard that this would in fact be where she was staying, Kaede quickly followed him up a flight of stairs.

Kaede didn’t know what to expect from the room where she’d be sleeping for the next year, but it certainly wasn’t to be sent into a coughing fit from all the dust as soon as she stepped inside.

“Allergies?” Sojiro asked with a chuckle.

“N-No, I just-”

“Come on, even I’m allowed to joke around now and then.” Sojiro said. 

“Sorry.” Kaede looked down in embarrassment. 

“Whatever. Anyways, I at least got you some sheets for your bed. You’re on your own for the rest, however.” Sojiro said. Kaede nodded.

“Okay. I’m sure that it won’t be too hard.” Kaede said. Sojiro blinked.

“Alright… also, don’t go running around causing trouble. I won’t hesitate to throw you out if you do.” Sojiro’s voice was so cold that Kaede could feel her body temperature drop. 

“W-Wouldn’t dream of it.” Kaede said before noticing a box in the center of the room. She went over and opened it, and was met with her various clothes and belongings that her parents shipped off before she left. Her eyes lit up as she noticed the music sheets for various songs she would play on the piano back at home. 

“That’s right, you were a pianist at your old school or something.” Sojiro said. Kaede excitedly nodded.

“Yep! I’ve been playing piano for as long as I could remember!” Kaede said as she seemed to completely forget her situation as she began giving a lengthy explanation of her history with the piano. Her excitement caught Sojiro off guard, especially since it seemed to be enough proof that her peppy and upbeat attitude was genuine and not an attempt to seem better than she actually was. Or maybe that was just him.

“Alright, alright, I didn’t ask for your life story, kid.” Sojiro cut Kaede off, making her freeze in embarrassment. “Anyways, I’ll leave cleaning this place to you. Don’t go causing too much noise, got it? I don’t want you disturbing my customers.” After receiving one last nod from Kaede, Sojiro left the room.

Kaede sighed and looked around. If she were even remotely like the Ultimate Maid, Kirumi Tojo, cleaning the room wouldn’t be a problem. But she was Kaede Akamatsu. If it wasn’t playing the piano, there was a good chance she wasn’t very good at it. 

Just as she was about to contemplate just living among this mess for a year, she saw something blue out of the corner of her eye. It was a bluebird. The bird was perched on her windowsill, staring at her with unblinking eyes.

Wasn’t the window closed when she came in? Was this species of bird even native to this part of the world? Despite these questions, Kaede approached the bird, and kneeled down to get a better look at it. Adding more to how odd this sight was, the bird didn’t fly away when Kaede got close. In fact, the bird appeared to hop a bit closer as well when she approached. The bird looked at her with a look in its eyes that almost appeared to be… desperate. Like it was silently begging her for help. How such a thing could be portrayed through the eyes of a bird was beyond her. She was about to reach out a hand to touch the bird, when she heard a knock at the door.

Kaede was snapped back to reality as she turned to look at the door. When she looked back, the window was closed and the bird was gone. With this and the vision from earlier, she was thoroughly convinced she was exhausted. With that, she opened the door and was confused until she saw some cleaning supplies. 

Kaede smiled. She took her headphones out of her backpack, put them on, and put on some piano music as she began cleaning. 

* * *

"Phew…” Kaede wiped sweat off her forehead once she decided the attic was in a condition that was at least considered livable. 

“Hm, not bad, kid.” She heard Sojiro say behind her. 

“Oh! Uh, thank you! I did my best, I guess.” Kaede said. 

“Don’t sweat it. Anyways, just thought you should know that I’ll be heading home for the night. We’ll be heading to Shujin tomorrow, so don’t stay up too late.” Sojiro said. Kaede nodded.

“Okay. Goodnight.” Kaede said.

“...Alright, I just have to ask. How on Earth are you being so positive?” Sojiro asked. Kaede blinked. 

“Uh… would you prefer if I was sad or something?” Kaede asked.

“That’s not-I mean-” Sojiro sighed, “Look, you just got sentenced to a year long probation. What’s got you in such a good mood?” Sojiro asked.

“Well… I’m not going to get anywhere by moping, am I?” Kaede asked. Sojiro sighed.

“I guess not. Alright, I won’t bother you about it anymore. Just don’t act too recklessly. I’ll be going now.” Sojiro said before leaving Kaede to herself.

Kaede sat on the bed that she would be calling hers for the next year and turned on her phone. She frowned at her wallpaper, which was a picture of her with all of her friends back home. Sojiro’s words about the fact that they’d be going to Shujin tomorrow combined with the picture is what caused it to finally sink in that she wouldn’t be going to school with her friends anymore. She shook her head. Maybe some piano music would cheer her up. As she didn’t have an actual piano she could play, she’d have to settle for a piano app on her phone. It was then that she noticed it.

The app from before was back.

“Huh…?” Now she was concerned. Was this some kind of virus? She quickly deleted it once again, hoping it would stay deleted this time. Almost as though it were timed, her phone rang. After getting startled for a split second, she quickly picked up. 

“Um… hello?” 

She instantly recognized that voice.

“Saihara-kun?” Kaede asked.

“Uh, yeah. Am I calling at a bad time?” Shuichi asked. 

“No, no, it’s fine. I just got done settling in, actually.” Kaede said.

“Okay… anyways, I just wanted to say… I’m sorry I didn’t come to say goodbye earlier…” Even on the phone, the shame in Shuichi’s voice was enough to make Kaede’s stomach drop. 

“It’s… it’s fine. I’m not really someone you want to get caught talking to anyways.” Kaede said. 

“N-No, I just… I just can’t believe it. Are you sure there’s nothing going on, Akamatsu-san? Something just doesn’t seem right…” 

Kaede paused. 

“Yeah. We wouldn’t be talking this way if I didn’t do anything.” Kaede said. 

“Akamatsu-san… please…” Shuichi sounded like he was on the verge of begging. 

“Saihara-kun… I did what I had to do, and I faced the consequences for it. I don’t know what came over me that day, but it happened.” Kaede insisted. She heard Shuichi sigh.

“Okay, Akamatsu-san… I’m still not entirely convinced, but I’ll take your word for now.” Shuichi said. Kaede sighed.

“Thank you, Saihara-kun. Oh yeah, make sure you stop by the Reserve Course and check on Mi-chan now and then.” Kaede requested. 

“Wha-Oh, okay.” Shuichi said.

Kaede and Shuichi talked for a while longer, briefly allowing them to both forget the current situation. When they finally said goodbye and hung up, Kaede realized that night time had arrived. Remembering that she had to get up early the next day, Kaede changed out of her clothes into an oversized purple shirt and black shorts before climbing into bed. 

After staring at the ceiling for several minutes, Kaede drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Kaede woke up in a cell.


	2. Chapter 2

Kaede looked around the blue prison cell. Was this some kind of dream? It felt like it was, but it also felt so real at the same time. She sat up in an attempt to better assess her surroundings, only to hear a light “clank” sound beneath her. This caused her to look down and notice not just the shackles around her wrists and the ball and chain around her ankle, but the black and white prison uniform she was adorned in as well. What kind of dream was this? 

Just then, she heard footsteps. She looked towards the source of the noise, only to see two boys on the other side of the cell. They appeared to be in their third year of middle school, and were both wearing black shoes, black pants, and blue shirts with black ties. One had short and straight white hair. He smiled as his golden eyes followed his hand as it traced over a small knife in his other hand. It was then Kaede noticed his black gloves, with the letter V surrounded by laurels on the back of the glove on his right hand. The other also had short white hair, but his was more curly and his bangs were just long enough to cover both of his eyes. He nervously fiddled with the blue and black hat on top of his head, one that also had a match on who Kaede assumed was his brother. The nervous one held a clipboard to his chest, showing that the golden V on his gloves was on his left hand rather than his right. 

“W-What is this!? Where am I!?” Kaede demanded. The boy with the knife looked up at her and his smile grew even bigger.

“You look scared, Dollface. Smile for our master, won’t you?” He said before going back to fiddling with his knife.

Master…?

“Trickster,” At the sound of a much deeper voice, Kaede’s attention was brought to the old man in a fancy suit sitting at a table in the center of the room. He was balding, and had the longest nose she had ever seen. His long nose almost made his pointed ears, large grin, and buggy eyes look normal in comparison. He extended a gloved hand towards Kaede’s cell, “Welcome to my Velvet Room.”

“Velvet Room?” Kaede asked. 

“D-Don’t worry… You’re currently fast asleep in reality… Everything is okay...” The boy whose eyes were hidden behind his bangs said before quickly looking away from her. 

“So… this is a dream?” Kaede asked, as this did absolutely nothing to lessen her confusion. The curly haired boy slowly nodded.

“It’s still no excuse to just act how you please. Straighten up, Dollface, you’re just embarrassing yourself at this point.” The straight haired boy said as he twirled his knife around his hand. The old man chuckled, drawing Kaede away from the two boys once again.

“Welcome, I am pleased to make your acquaintance. This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those bound by a “contract” may enter.” The old man explained as he tapped his fingers against the table.

“...Who are you?” Out of all the questions that flooded her mind at the moment, this was the only one Kaede could get past her lips.

“I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well.” Igor said.

“O-Okay… why am I here?” Kaede asked.

“I summoned you to speak of important matters. It involves your life as well.” Igor replied.

“M-My life!?” If she wasn’t holding onto the cell’s bars, Kaede would’ve fallen to her knees out of shock then and there.

“You heard correctly. Still, this is a surprise. The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such. It appears you truly are a prisoner of fate.” Kaede’s heart sank at Igor’s explanation of the room’s appearance. This was the state of her heart?

“Or she just enjoys being locked up.” The boy with the knife said before laughing to himself. His twin attempted to say something, but quickly shut himself up. Igor immediately brushed off the young boy’s comment.

“In the near future, there’s no mistake that ruin awaits you.” Igor said.

“R-Ruin!? What does that mean!?” Kaede yelled.

“I speak of the end to everything.” Igor explained, completely unfazed by Kaede’s rising distress. “However, there is a way to avoid this.” Upon hearing that, Kaede managed to calm down a little.

“How so?” She asked after taking a few deep breaths.

“You must be “rehabilitated.” Rehabilitated towards freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin. Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?” Igor asked. Kaede quickly nodded. 

“Yes! Of course!” She didn’t even fully know what that meant, but she obviously didn’t want the world to end.

“Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation.” Igor said. 

The two boys turned to face her once again. 

“Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others. On your right is Felix; to your left, Alphonse. They serve as wardens here.” Igor introduced the twin brothers.

“U-Um… I look forward to helping you with your r-rehabilitation…” The boy with the blinding bangs, Alphonse, said before bowing his head and holding his clipboard to his chest again.

“You have nice looking skin, Dollface. Could use a bit more red though.” The boy with the knife, Felix, said as he bounced the knife in his palm.

“F-Felix… Wardens are supposed to protect their prisoners… You can’t just h-hurt her for fun…” Alphonse said without even looking in his brother’s direction. For the first time since Kaede entered this mysterious Velvet Room, Felix frowned. He tightly gripped his knife as he glared at Alphonse.

“Wardens aren’t supposed to be such huge crybabies either! So shut your mouth!” Felix yelled, making Alphonse flinch before he seemingly went completely silent, but anyone listening closely or had a sense of hearing as good as Kaede’s would realize he was whispering apologies over and over again.

“I’ll explain the roles of these two at another occasion.” Igor said as the banter of the twins came to a halt and they once again turned away from Kaede.

The mysterious Igor, the sadistic Felix, and the timid Alphonse. Whatever this path to “rehabilitation” had in store for her, these three would be her guides. So she figured she’d better get used to them pretty quick. 

“Now then… It seems the night is waning. It is almost time. Take your time to come to slowly understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually…” Igor said.

“Wait-” Kaede was cut off by an alarm that blared throughout the room, making both her and Alphonse flinch.

“Awww, our time is up.” Felix said in what almost sounded like a sad tone before he turned towards Kaede one final time. “Alright, Dollface, head back to sleep.”

* * *

  
“Hold on!” Kaede sat up in bed, her arm outstretched towards nothing.

“That must’ve been some dream you were having.” Startled, Kaede gasped and turned her head to see Sojiro standing in the doorway. She quickly attempted to laugh it off.

“M… Mhm. Nothing too special, just reenacting a scene from a manga I read recently.” Even if it was just a dream, saying “I had a dream where I was in prison and a long nosed old man and two teenage wardens warned me of the upcoming apocalypse” would be too weird to say out loud.

“Whatever. Hurry up and get ready, we’ll be introducing ourselves properly to the staff about your transfer. The school you’re attending is in the Aoyama district. It’ll take a while to get there by train. The transfers are a real hassle, too. I’ll drive you there, but just for today.” Sojiro said before he turned to leave. “Sheesh… children usually aren’t allowed in my passenger seat.” Kaede heard him mutter before going down the stairs.

* * *

Kaede stared in awe as she and Sojiro approached Shujin Academy. She didn’t know what she was expecting, but probably not something that gave off a feeling so… bleak. Though, she probably should have expected it just from the uniform. The black, red, and white were a huge contrast from the brown and white of Hope’s Peak Academy’s uniform, and an even bigger contrast from the pink and purple usually seen in Kaede’s casual wear.

“Do me a favor and behave yourself in there, alright?” Kaede was snapped out of her train of thought when Sojiro spoke to her.

“Hm? Yeah, of course I will.” Kaede said. Sojiro sighed.

“Don’t get me wrong-I don’t really care what happens to you. Just don’t cause me any trouble.” Sojiro said before heading inside.

“Okay, good talk.” Kaede muttered before following him. 

* * *

Kaede usually wasn’t one to judge someone based on their appearance. But something about the overweight bald man in a yellow suit sitting at the desk before her and Sojiro immediately made her think he wasn’t going to be the most pleasant person to speak with. Though, the fact that he wasn’t exactly giving her the most kind stare in the world also played a large role in that.

“Just to reiterate, if you cause us any trouble, you will immediately be expelled. Frankly, I was hesitant to accept someone like you, but there were some circumstances on your side.” The principal, Kobayakawa, said as Sojiro signed some papers.

“I see…” Kaede said as she rubbed the back of her neck.

“Whatever you got away with in your hometown, you won’t get away with here. If you get expelled from here, you’ll have nowhere else to go, understand?” Kobayakawa asked as though Kaede hadn’t basically had this type of warning carved into her brain.

If she messes up, game over.

“Right. Don’t worry, I’ll do my best to stay out of trouble.” Kaede assured the headmaster. Although he nodded in response, nothing about it indicated he’d be any less harsh towards her.

“This is Sadayo Kawakami. She’s the teacher who will be in charge of your class.” Kobayakawa gestured to the woman next to him. She appeared to be in her mid twenties, had frizzy shoulder length brown hair, and was wearing a long sleeved yellow and white striped shirt and a jean skirt that ended just below her knees. The look she gave Kaede made it clear that she would rather be anywhere else at the moment.

“Here’s your student ID.” Kawakami said as she placed Kaede’s ID on Kobayakawa’s desk. Kaede got a brief glimpse of what appeared to be a pink piece of paper underneath it before Kawakami quickly snatched it away.

“Thank you.” Was all Kaede said as she picked up her ID. 

“Be sure to read the school rules, okay? Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office. If you get in any trouble, I won’t be able to protect you at all.” Kawakami instructed her. Kaede smiled and nodded.

“Of course. Let’s make this year a good one, alright?” Kaede said. Kawakami blinked.

“Uh… sure?” It was pretty clear that like with Sojiro the previous day, Kaede was not living up to whatever image that was in Kawakami’s head. 

“Trust me, her attitude surprised me too. It’s like they sent me some kind of doppelgänger or something.” Sojiro said in a semi-joking manner, having also caught onto Kawakami’s reaction. Kaede awkwardly laughed.

“Well, don’t be fooled. I’m as tough as they come.” Kaede said in her best “bad girl” voice while holding up both of her fists. Something that, despite the “delinquent” label slapped on her, convinced absolutely no one.

“…Anyways. Can we get going now? I have a store to run.” Sojiro said. Kobayakawa nodded.

“Be sure to keep an eye on her, Sakura-san. Make sure she doesn’t get in any trouble outside of school.” Kobayakawa said. 

“I’ll make sure to have a serious talk with her about her situation.” Sojiro assured Kobayakawa.

“Come to the faculty office when you arrive at school tomorrow. I’ll show you to your classroom.” Kawakami instructed Kaede. Kaede nodded.

“Alright. See you tomorrow, then.” Kaede said before she left with Sojiro.

_“Why my class?”_ Kawakami thought.

* * *

  
“I think things went well.” Kaede said as she and Sojiro walked through the hallway.

“Really? Because everyone’s giving you the cold shoulder. Though, I guess that’s what a criminal record does to you. No matter where you go, your past always follows you.” Sojiro said.

“Well… isn’t that true for everyone? Criminal or not?” Kaede asked.

“Hm. I guess you’re right. Still, you seemed a bit insistent back there on being seen as such. What’s with that?” Sojiro asked.

“Um… I don’t want to look soft?” Was that really the best she could come up with? Though, saying Sojiro’s joke about her being sent in a lookalike’s place made her panic for being too on the nose would probably be a worse idea.

“Whatever. I guess this is a good time for me to remind you that I’ll kick you out if you get in any trouble.” Sojiro reminded her.

“Mhm. Don’t get in trouble. Got it.” Kaede said. 

“Alright. Let’s go home.” Sojiro said with a sigh before leaving the building, with Kaede quickly following after him.

* * *

Meanwhile, Miyuki Akamatsu was in a funk.

“Kae-chan… I’m so sorry…” She muttered as she hugged her pillow to her chest. 

Not only had Kaede been arrested in her place, but that man had forced both her and the woman who was being assaulted in the first place into compliance. Meaning she was forced to lie and then watch as her sister was condemned to a fate that was supposed to be hers.

Miyuki’s attention was then drawn to the sound of a knock at her bedroom door.

“Miyuki?” It was her mother, Shiori Akamatsu.

“What is it?” Miyuki asked. Shiori frowned when she opened the door and saw Miyuki laying in bed.

“Why don’t you go spend time with your friends?” Shiori suggested.

“Would my friends even want to talk to me? I’m “the criminal’s sister” now.” Miyuki said as she sat up. Shiori sighed, sat on the bed, and put a hand on Miyuki’s shoulder.

“Miyuki… it’s only for a year. If Kaede doesn’t get in trouble again, things will be back to normal in no time.” Shiori attempted to reassure her daughter. Miyuki clenched her fist. Even if Kaede did successfully serve her probation, that wouldn’t get rid of people’s views on her. Kaede’s life was basically over. And it was because of her.

“That’s not the problem…” Miyuki muttered.

“If you miss her so much, we can call her.” Shiori suggested. Miyuki shook her head.

“It’s… it’s fine… I just need some fresh air…” Miyuki said before walking past her mom and leaving her room.

After getting her shoes on, Miyuki stepped outside and took in the world around her. With a sigh, she decided to go to the nearby park. It wasn’t until she already arrived that she realized that was a bad idea, as she just ended up remembering childhood memories of coming here with Kaede as a kid. It was always her favorite place to go when she wasn’t playing piano. Not exactly the best thing to think about when trying to take her mind off Kaede.

Right as she was about to leave, however, she saw a boy. The frizzy haired boy noticed her and quickly ran up to her.

“Um, hey, Akamatsu-san.” The boy said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Hm? Oh. Amamiya-kun.” It took Miyuki a second to recognize him, but she knew who he was.

Like Miyuki, Ren Amamiya was a Reserve Course student at Hope’s Peak Academy. The best way to describe him was… odd. He seemed friendly, yet also didn’t seem like the type of person you’d want to piss off. He wasn’t shy, but wasn’t chatty. He honestly reminded Miyuki of a cat, being calm and quiet one second, then being fierce and intimidating the next. Despite this, he appeared to catch the eye of several female students. It seemed like he got a different love confession each week. In fact, if Kaede’s word was anything to go by before she got expelled, there were even a few people in the Main Course who were willing to at least admit Ren was attractive when they had seen him. And yet shockingly, despite Miyuki being known for her constant attempts at getting a boyfriend, the two never spoke that often.

“I heard about your sister. I’m… really sorry.” Ren was noticeably not looking Miyuki in the eye. She sighed.

“Is that all?” Miyuki asked.

“No, I’m just… shocked. She didn’t seem like the type of girl to get herself arrested.” Ren said.

He was right. She wasn’t.

“Amamiya-kun… why are you talking to me?” Miyuki asked.

“Huh?” The look on Ren’s face showed he was genuinely caught off guard by her question.

“We’re in the same class, but we don’t really talk that much. Why are you suddenly concerned about me?” Miyuki elaborated.

“Oh. Well, again, I heard about what happened, and I just felt like it would be a good idea to make sure you were okay. I really hope you don’t think I’m using your sister as an excuse to flirt with you or anything, because… I’m not.” Ren explained.

“Alright. And good, I think I’m gonna take a break from my romantic pursuits for awhile. It just doesn’t feel like the right time for that.” Miyuki said. 

“Okay. Just know I hope things turn out alright for you and your family.” Ren said. Miyuki nodded.

“Thank you. I just hope Kae-chan doesn’t get hurt, since she’s apparently staying where those supposed mental shutdowns are happening…” Miyuki said.

* * *

Several citizens were thrown back as the subway train sped past them at high speed.

“Hey! What’s going on in there!?” One of the passengers demanded as he pounded on the door, while several others clung to whatever they could grab for dear life.

All words fell on deaf ears, as the driver was completely rigid. His eyes had rolled back into his head as black ooze dripped out of his mouth.

The screams both inside and outside of the train were completely muted as it came to an abrupt halt and tipped over.

* * *

Sae Niijima stared at the TV as the reporter described the accident. Another one. Another shutdown.

“Everything’s linked. That’s what you’re thinking isn’t it?” Sae’s attention was brought to her director.

It was true. There was no way these accidents weren’t connected. Even if it seemed unlikely, someone was behind them. And Sae was going to find out who.

“Are you free? We haven’t had dinner together in awhile.” Her director offered.

“Thank you, sir. But I have another meeting to attend.” Sae said before bidding him farewell with a bow and leaving the room. As she walked down the stairs, she was met with the sight of a boy in his late teens. Phone in one hand, and a briefcase in the other, he looked up with a smile as Sae approached him.

“Did you ask for me? Is it a case?” The brunette asked. 

“Not quite. I want your opinion on something.” Sae replied as she paused in her steps.

“Sure. Your judgement is quite often correct, though. Could we discuss this over sushi, perhaps? You are making a student work late, after all.” The younger male said.

“Conveyor belt only.” Was all Sae said as she continued walking, leaving the boy disappointed.

* * *

Kaede stretched her arms as she and Sojiro entered Leblanc.

“Damn, to think there’d be this much traffic… What a waste of time. I wasn’t able to open the café today.” Sojiro sighed.

“Yeah. I could barely hear my mom over all the cars.” Kaede said. Her mother had unexpectedly called her while she was in the car with Sojiro. Mostly just to tell her that both she and Miyuki already missed her. Yet, strangely, Miyuki didn’t come to the phone herself.

“Hm. Good to know that your parents don’t view you as a complete pain in the ass.” Sojiro said before chuckling to himself. Kaede crossed her arms and pouted.

“Not funny.” Kaede said.

“Geez, is your real crime being unable to take a joke? Because that’s the second time you’ve done that.” Sojiro said.

“Sorry, it’s a bit hard to tell.” Kaede apologized.

“Whatever. Just head upstairs, there’s something I need to give to you.” Sojiro said. Kaede nodded before heading up the stairs.

“Talk about a gruesome accident. Eighty people were involved.” Sojiro noted as he read about the subway accident on his phone while entering the attic Kaede now called her room.

“Oh no…” Kaede felt a chilling emptiness in her gut. The more she thought about it, the more the idea of a mental shutdown terrified her. Especially if the victim was the driver of a vehicle you were in, while you were trapped and unable to do anything.

“Anyways, here’s a diary. Make sure you keep it up to date.” Sojiro handed Kaede a small black book.

“Huh? What’s this for?” Kaede asked.

“You may be under probation, but there’s no limitations to what you do in particular. Besides following the law, that is. However, I’m obligated to report on you, which is why I’m having you record your daily activities.” Sojiro explained.

“I see. Well, I’ll write in it as much as I can, then.” Kaede said. Before Sojiro could respond, his phone rang. He immediately picked it up.

“Hey, it’s me… Don’t worry, I’m almost done… Alright, I’ll see you in a bit.” With that, he hung up.

“Well, I’m gonna assume you’ll be going now.” Kaede said. Sojiro nodded.

“Right. Spend your time however you like. Oh, but don’t go messing with my store. If anything goes missing-“

“You’ll kick me out?” Kaede cut him off. 

“…At least you’re catching on.” Sojiro said. Kaede heard him mutter something about a headache before she was left to herself.

“Alright. I think I’ll just write in my diary then go to bed.” Kaede said to herself before she began writing. When she finished writing, she heard a ringing from downstairs. Confused, she went downstairs to find that the source of the noise was a phone on the counter.

“Hello?” Kaede asked upon picking it up.

“Hey, it’s me.”

“Huh? Sakura-san?” Kaede asked.

“Yeah. Look, I closed up shop but I forgot to flip the sign to “Closed” when I left. It’s too much trouble for me to go back and do it myself. Think you can do it for me?” Sojiro requested.

“Oh. Yes, of course.” Kaede replied.

“I doubt anyone will come in, even if the sign is flipped to “Open.” Still, this is quite a relief. It’s pretty rare that I save a kid’s number on my phone. I’m glad you picked up. Anyways, I’ll leave the store sign to you.” Sojiro said.

“You got it!” With that, Kaede hung up. After that, she went outside, flipped the sign, and went back inside and up to her room.

After that, she changed into her pajamas, and got into bed. She sighed. She’d have to take the train to school and that accident would certainly make things difficult. She went to open the GPS app only to notice… that damn mystery app.

“Mmm… go away…” Kaede muttered as she deleted the app for what felt like the millionth time. She then groaned at the realization that if something was wrong with her phone, she’d have to reboot it. She rebooted it, proceeded with what she was doing, and went to sleep.

* * *

Kaede tapped one of her fingers against her cheek as she examined her uniform. She felt like she needed to do something to make it feel less bleak. That’s when she got an idea. Removing the black ribbon that came with the uniform, she replaced it with one of her orange ties. Nothing too extreme, but it added some extra color to the uniform. With that, she was ready to start the day. She went downstairs and was about to head out the door, but was stopped by Sojiro.

“I don’t even know if I should be surprised you’re actually going to school…” Sojiro sighed. Kaede awkwardly chuckled at the fact that whatever person she was in Sojiro’s mind was continuously proven to be the opposite of how she was in real life.

“Um… yeah. Bye.” Kaede was about to leave once again.

“You’re leaving on an empty stomach?” Sojiro asked. It was then that Kaede noticed the plate of curry in front of him.

“…Oh! Thank you!” Kaede said as she quickly sat down.

“Just hurry up and eat before-“ Sojiro was cut off by Kaede already taking a bite. It was then he saw her eyes light up in a way that rivaled the way they lit up when she saw her piano related stuff.

“S… So good!” Kaede exclaimed before stuffing the rest of it into her face. Upon finishing, she once again stood up and grabbed her bag. “Again, thank you for the meal.” She said with a smile.

“I know I said I wouldn’t comment on it anymore, but you sure are nice for a supposed delinquent.” Sojiro said.

“Is that a bad thing?” Kaede asked. 

“Not at all. I mean, I guess I could be stuck with someone worse. Anyways, you should get going. Don’t want to be late on the first day. Oh, and turn the sign to “Open” on the way out. I’ll be leaving that to you from now on.” Sojiro replied. Kaede nodded.

“Alright. See you later!” Kaede gave a small wave before heading out the door. She flipped the sign as requested, and went on her way. Sojiro sighed once she was gone.

“Seriously, did they send me the wrong kid or something?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I’m going to take this opportunity to talk about the three (major) characters original to this story: Miyuki, Felix, and Alphonse.
> 
> Miyuki is kind of what TVTropes describes as an “OC Stand-In.” Kaede is mentioned to have a twin sister in canon, but it never goes beyond that and given the nature of V3, this sister might not even exist. Here, however, she does (obviously). She’s a Reserve Course student who is a bit of a hopeless romantic and constantly looking for a boyfriend. She’s also a classmate of Ren Amamiya because I thought confirming he still exists in this universe would be neat. Without getting too spoilery, she ends up being kind of important later.
> 
> Originally, Caroline and Justine were going to return for this story. However, then I remembered Persona 3 Portable. Even if it was basically the same story with a different main character, the female protagonist still had a different Velvet Room attendant in Theodore. And if that was the case for two characters who are alternate versions of each other, it would most certainly be the case for two characters who are different people. Thus, Felix and Alphonse were born. They’re said to look like they’re in their third year of middle school, putting them at around 14 years old (physically. They ARE Velvet Room residents, after all.). In regards to the other Velvet Siblings, they’re younger than Margaret, Elizabeth, and Theodore but older than Lavenza/Caroline and Justine. Due to the prison theme of the Velvet Room being unchanged, they keep the warden theme of their younger sisters.
> 
> Speaking of the boys individually, let’s start with Felix. He’s described as being “sadistic”, and carries around a knife which he often fiddles around with. He calls Kaede “Dollface” as opposed to something like “Prisoner” or “Inmate”, and isn’t exactly shy about the fact that he finds her attractive. Nor is he shy about the fact that he finds the idea of stabbing her just as attractive. He’s not a complete ball of edge, however, as he has the occasional moment where he can be found comforting his brother. In regards to the Frankenstein theme naming of the Velvet Room residents, he’s named after the son of the old blind man that the monster attempts to befriend, who beats and chases the monster away upon discovering him and then dies when the monster burns down the family’s house.
> 
> Moving on to the other half of the brothers, let’s talk about Alphonse. He’s described as “timid”, as it doesn’t take much effort to reduce him to a complete wreck. As opposed to Caroline and Justine both wearing eyepatches, Felix has both eyes exposed while Alphonse’s eyes are hidden behind the bangs of his hair. Even though he wants to take his job as a warden seriously, he’s a complete crybaby who’s scared of pretty much everything. Felix often teases him for this, but it’s more playful than how he teases Kaede. He’s probably as much of a punching bag as Theodore, basically. He’s named after Victor Frankenstein’s father, who would comfort his son whenever he was feeling down.
> 
> Also, they’re associated with birds rather than butterflies as another way of distinguishing them from Caroline and Justine.
> 
> Okay, bye.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This is when Kaede enters the Castle of Lust for the first time. Expect the usual… stuff that comes with that.
> 
> eugh

“Aw, geez…” Kaede muttered as she felt the raindrops hit her head the second she left the station. First, the crash from the previous day messes up the subway schedule, and now this? It got even worse when she realized she didn’t have an umbrella. She quickly stood under the awning of the nearest store and went to check the map on her phone, hoping she wouldn’t have to walk in the rain much further. However, she nearly screamed in rage when she saw that damn app on her screen again. If there was a time for her to consider if she should be throwing out her phone, this was possibly the absolute worst time.

And then she saw her.

A hooded girl stood in the spot next to Kaede. The girl sighed before taking down her hood, revealing she had long blonde hair tied up in pigtails and light blue eyes. Kaede gasped at the sight of the girl, unknowingly opening the app in the process. The girl noticed Kaede and turned her head to look at her. Great. Now she had to think of something to say.

“Um… hi.” Kaede said. The girl’s eyes widened upon hearing Kaede’s voice.

“Woah!” The blonde covered her mouth in shock.

“What’s wr-Oh!” It took a second for Kaede to realize it. The two girls sounded nearly exactly the same. After getting over the initial shock, they both awkwardly laughed at their vocal similarities.

“Well, that’s interesting.” The other girl muttered. Kaede took a deep breath. If she was going to be here for a whole year, she was going to need to make some friends.

“So… you go to Shujin?” Kaede asked. 

“Uh, yeah?” The other girl raised an eyebrow.

“Could you help me get to school? I’m a transfer student, and I don’t want to get lost.” Kaede explained. 

“Oh. Well…” The girl paused when she looked over Kaede’s shoulder. There was a car approaching them. Her attitude seemed to take a shift as she quickly nodded her head. “Y-Yeah! Let’s go!” With that, she grabbed Kaede’s wrist and started walking as fast as she could.

“H-Hey! Slow down a bit, please!” If it wasn’t for having such a tight grip on her wrist, Kaede would’ve fallen over at least three times as she was tugged along. The other girl pulled Kaede into an alley and sighed as she let go of her.

“Sorry… it’s just that if you waited a few more seconds, I would’ve had to take a ride from Kamoshida.” The girl explained.

“Kamoshida?” Kaede asked. 

“Right. Transfer student.” The girl sighed. “He’s the PE teacher at Shujin, you see? My best friend is on the volleyball team so I end up… interacting with him a lot.” From merely observing the girl’s expression, it was clear that she didn’t like talking about this guy. And with the emphasis on “interacting”, it didn’t take long for Kaede to guess why.

“Y-You don’t have to continue if you’re uncomfortable…” Kaede said. 

“It’s fine… I just thought I should let someone know, I guess… everyone thinks we’re dating, but I only put up with him for my friend’s sake…” The girl began fiddling with one of her pigtails. Kaede frowned. From what she was hearing, she already didn’t like this guy.

“Who does he think he is? Some kind of king in a castle or something?” Kaede gripped her phone, still oblivious of the app being opened.

“Y’know, I think you’re not too far off on that…” The girl said. Kaede sighed.

“Alright. We should get going.” Kaede said.

“Oh, I think there’s a shortcut this way.” The other girl motioned Kaede to follow her before going further into the alley. Kaede quickly followed her, realizing there was something she forgot to ask.

“So, what’s your name?” Kaede asked.

“Hm? Oh, I’m Ann Takamaki. You?” The girl, Ann, replied.

“I’m-What the…?” Kaede stopped in her tracks. Ann was about to ask what was wrong but stopped when she noticed what Kaede was looking at.

Before the two girls was what appeared to be a medieval castle. At the entrance, there was a sign that read “Shujin Academy.”

“W-What the…!? What happened to the school!?” Ann stepped back in shock as Kaede was left frozen at the sight before her. This was certainly not how the school looked yesterday. 

“Only one way to find out.” Kaede said. Ann’s eyes widened when she saw Kaede walking towards the castle that stood in place of the school.

“Wait! You can’t just walk in when you see a mysterious building or… whatever’s going on here!” Ann protested as she chased after Kaede.

* * *

“Are you sure we went the right way?” Kaede asked as she looked around. Even if her eyes were playing tricks on her in regards to the building’s exterior, she knew for a fact that the interior was different from what she previously saw.

“Yes! I’m sure!” Ann yelled. 

“Weird… should we investigate? Maybe the school’s hosting some kind of event.” Kaede suggested.

“How are you being so calm!?” It was clear that Ann just wanted to grab Kaede and shake her right now.

“We’re not gonna solve anything if we panic, are we? If this really is supposed to be the school, we need to figure out what’s going on!” Kaede said. Ann took a deep breath.

“I… guess you’re right. But still, what could possibly be going on here?” Ann wondered. Just then, two figures dressed like stereotypical medieval knights approached the girls.

“Princess?” One of them asked.

“Huh? Princess?” Kaede looked around, trying to see if there was anyone else there. She looked at Ann to see if she knew anything, but the twintailed girl appeared just as confused.

“You! What do you think you’re doing with the princess!?” The other knight demanded as he pointed his weapon at Kaede. 

“W-Woah! Calm down!” Kaede defensively waved her hands around.

“Wait… by princess do you mean… ME!?” Ann stepped back in shock. 

“Do you think something’s wrong with the princess?” The first knight asked.

“I’m sure she’ll be fine once we deal with this intruder and get her back to King Kamoshida.” The second knight replied.

“Kamoshida!?” Ann yelled. Kaede, having already gotten an idea of what this Kamoshida guy was like from Ann’s words, quickly stood in front of the other girl.

“She’s not going anywhere near that guy!” Kaede shouted. The two knights were unfazed as they continued to point their weapons at Kaede.

“Take her to the dungeon.” Was all the first knight said before the second knight grabbed Kaede.

“Hey! Let go of me!” Kaede began struggling, trying her best to break free from the knight’s grip.

“H-Hold on! I got you!” Ann quickly ran over and tried to pull Kaede free. 

“Princess! What has gotten into you!?” Ann’s efforts were cut short as the first knight grabbed her. Now, it was Ann’s turn to start struggling. 

“Takamaki-san!” Kaede yelled.

“Something seems off about the princess.” The first knight pointed out, as if it wasn’t obvious to his companion. 

“Let’s keep her in the dungeon for now. We can’t return her to King Kamoshida while she’s like this.” The second knight suggested. The first knight seemed to agree, as they started carrying Ann and Kaede to who knows where, causing them to struggle even more.

“Get off of me!” It was when Kaede managed to successfully land a kick to the knight’s leg that her captor seemed to decide he had enough of her, as she felt a sharp pain in her head before blacking out.

* * *

“Hey! Wake up!” Kaede woke up with a throbbing pain in her head. She opened her eyes and saw that she was in some kind of cell. However, it was completely different from that “Velvet Room” she had dreamed about the previous day. The biggest difference, aside from the lack of blue, was that Ann was with her.

“Takamaki-san! What happened!?” Kaede yelled as she sat up, clutching her head in pain immediately afterwards. 

“I-I don’t know! They just threw us in here!” At this point, it was clear that asking Ann about anything would get her nowhere. Suddenly, a scream echoed from down the hall, causing Kaede and Ann to jump in surprise. When they heard footsteps approaching, Ann began making as much noise as she possibly could. 

“Help us! Please!” Kaede found herself joining in, probably because she also just wanted to get out of whatever this was at this point. Both of them went silent when the knights from before returned. This time, not only were there more of them, but they were accompanied by a middle aged man with dark bushy hair, and a… broad chin to say the least. He was wearing a crown, a red robe covered in hearts, pink slippers, and… that was it.

“Kamoshida!?” Ann yelled.

“That’s Kamoshida!?” From what little info she got from Ann, Kaede could tell this Kamoshida guy was some kind of creep. But she certainly wasn’t expecting him to walk around dressed in whatever garb he was currently wearing.

“See? The princess has been acting strange since this intruder arrived!” One of the knights gestured at Kaede. Kamoshida gave a look of annoyance, and it was only then that Kaede noticed that his eyes were an almost creepy shade of yellow.

“Are you seriously that stupid? This isn’t my Ann, it’s an imposter.” Kamoshida dismissively waved his hand, revealing that he was, in fact, only wearing a pink speedo under that robe.

“What are you talking about!? What’s going on!?” Ann demanded. 

“I don’t know how you could’ve mixed the two up. The princess never speaks back to me like that.” Kamoshida said. It was then that he turned his attention to Kaede. The smile he gave her combined with the look in his eyes made her step back in disgust.

“Put some pants on.” Kaede muttered under her breath. It appeared that Kamoshida didn’t hear this, since the look on his face didn’t even falter as he looked at Ann once again.

“Who’s your friend?” Kamoshida asked. Ann briefly glanced at Kaede before her eyes widened in horror.

“S-She’s not a friend! We just met today! I don’t even know her name!” Ann yelled. 

“I see… well, I guess you won’t mind if I get a closer look, then.” Kamoshida said before the knights opened the cell door. As he started to approach Kaede, she backed away even further until her back was pressed against the wall. 

“Get away from me.” Kaede said. Kamoshida ignored her, gripping her chin between two of his fingers.

“Come on, now, don’t be so-“ Everything went silent after Kaede’s spit landed in Kamoshida’s eye. 

“I said get away-“ Kaede was cut off by Kamoshida’s fist colliding with her face, causing her to fall to the ground. Kaede bought one of her hands to her eye, wincing and retracting her hand immediately upon making contact.

“Send her to death. She’s not worth a second of my time.” Kamoshida said. As the knights began to head towards Kaede, Ann was quick to intervene.

“Wait! Don’t hurt her! Please!” Ann begged. Kamoshida held the side of his head, feigning an expression of pain.

“This Takamaki’s too annoying… execute her first, then deal with the other one.” Upon this new order from Kamoshida, half the knights grabbed Kaede while the other half grabbed Ann.

“Let us go!” Ann shouted as she began struggling just like earlier.

“Leave Takamaki-san alone, you creep!” Kaede flailed her legs with hope that she would somehow land a kick on the wannabe king in front of her.

“Awww, isn’t that cute? Poor girl thinks she stands a chance against me. Make sure she gets a good look at the execution. Oh yeah, and make sure you tear their clothes apart before you get to the rest of them.” Kamoshida said.

“No! Please!” Ann begged as a knight approached her, sword raised as Kamoshida laughed at the sight.

Suddenly, the world around Kaede darkened, save for a blue bird that appeared to be glowing as it flew in circles above her.

_“This game is one you have been unfairly thrust into. You must be thinking that there’s no way you can possibly win. However, if you can hear my voice, then there is still hope. Hope for you, me, and everyone.”_ A voice resembling a young boy’s appeared to come from the bird. Had she heard that voice before? It sounded like one of those boys from the Velvet Room. However, it sounded too polite to be Felix but too bold to be Alphonse. 

Before she could question it further, the world regained its color, and the bird was gone.

**“My, my! What do we have here? You realize that girl will die if you just sit there and watch, right? You haven’t come to regret your decision from that fateful night, have you?”**

Kaede’s eyes widened as a new voice echoed from within her head. While she wanted to question who exactly was talking to her, the question about if she regretted her decision appeared to get to her. Did she regret it? She thought back to that man, to that woman, and to her sister. If she had just continued on her way home, no one would’ve even attempted to save that woman from that man. If she hadn’t spoken up at the last second, then her sister would most likely be the one getting “executed” right now. Her answer was clear.

_“No. I don’t regret it.”_ Kaede thought. The voice in her head laughed.

**“Did I even need to ask? Alright, then. If that’s how you feel, let us begin with our contract.”** Kaede yelped in pain as she suddenly felt an intense headache that made the pain in her eye feel like nothing more than a brief sting. **“I am thou, thou art I. Thou has chosen to run away from the chains that bind you. Combine your wits and strength and use them to overpower those who try to hold you down!”** Even though she was writhing in pain, Kaede could still feel some kind of resonance with what the voice was telling her. In fact, she managed to briefly ignore all the pain she was feeling to briefly look up at Kamoshida, who was about to have a knight swing a sword down at Ann.

“ENOUGH!” Kaede yelled, bringing everything in the room to an abrupt pause. Kamoshida turned around, Kaede being unfazed by his glare.

“Huh? You want to die that badly? Fine! Start with her instead!” Kamoshida pointed at Kaede before she was thrown to the ground. The knight ditched Ann, instead aiming his sword at Kaede. However, before he could, a strong gust of wind that seemingly came from Kaede herself knocked everyone back. Kaede looked up, revealing a black and red mask which vaguely resembled a bird now adorned her face. She began to freak out, frantically trying to get it off. She screamed in pain as she ripped it off, seemingly ripping her skin off with it, as the top half of her face was now covered in blood.

Despite the large wound on her face, Kaede smiled as widely as she could before being engulfed in flames. Ann’s jaw dropped as a face began to form within the flames before the fire separated from Kaede, revealing her clothes had completely changed. Instead of the female uniform for Shujin Academy, Kaede was now wearing a black coat that went down to her kneecaps and had a hood which was draped over her head, a white button up shirt with a grey waistcoat, and black leather shorts. Her black stockings were now red with musical patterns aligning them like on one of her skirts, and she had a pair of black boots which went up to her ankles. In addition to a pair of red gloves, there was a large red ribbon tied into a bow around the collar of her shirt.

Behind Kaede was a humanoid creature which resembled a woman. While her face lacked a nose and mouth, it was hardly noticeable with the way her red eyes stuck out against her porcelain white skin. She had long black hair that flowed in just about every direction, with the tips of her hair resembling black flames. She wore a torn red dress, showing off that while her arms and legs were milky white like her face, her hands and feet appeared to be burnt as black as her hair, with her fingernails looking more like claws.

“Wha… What is…!?” Ann sputtered in shock.

**“I am known as Irene. Come, sweetheart, show them what happens when one of them tries to get in our way!”** Irene said. A determined smile appeared on Kaede’s face as she nodded.

“Right! Let’s go!” Kaede yelled. Despite the fear that was in his eyes, Kamoshida glared at Kaede.

“Tch! You think you’re tough, little girl!? Let’s see how you do against my men! Get her!” Kamoshida pointed at Kaede, causing her former captors to morph into two creatures resembling small witches with pumpkin heads riding on a broom while holding a lantern.

“Take this!” Kaede instinctively reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a knife before slashing at the pumpkin creature, causing it to dissolve into nothing.

**“Let me have some fun too.”** Irene requested. Kaede nodded before pointing at the remaining pumpkin creature.

“Get ‘em, Irene!” Kaede commanded. Irene summoned a wave of what appeared to be some dark energy that obliterated the pumpkin creature before disappearing herself.

“…What was that!?” Ann yelled. Kaede took down her hood before looking at Ann.

“Oh. Um… I don’t know.”

* * *

_Name: Irene_

_Arcana: 0. The Fool_

_Description: An opera singer who married a nobleman. With the use of her wits, she became one of the few people to outsmart the legendary Sherlock Holmes._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have… mixed feelings about this chapter.
> 
> I had to take a few creative liberties to keep the plot flowing (such as Ann talking about Kamoshida to someone she just met, like, a few seconds ago) and I’m a little eh about other things like the description of Kaede’s Persona. I also got a headache when describing Kaede’s mask of all things (which is supposed to be her Argument Armament mask but with the purple parts changed to red to match the rest of the costume) because I kept getting confused on whether it looked like a butterfly, a cat, a bird, or just a random shape. I eventually said “fuck it” and went with bird to match with her little blue bird friend.
> 
> So, here, we get a major deviation from canon as Kaede asks Ann for a walk to school before she can meet (real) Kamoshida or Ryuji, because if this chapter doesn’t prove this won’t just be “P5R novelization but Kaede is there”, I don’t know what will. We also get a fun little Actor Allusion at the start since Kaede and Ann have the same English VA. 
> 
> Kaede’s Persona is based on Irene Adler, as I felt like giving her Arsene would just be…weird after all the other changes I did.
> 
> Anyways, let’s have some fun. Now that we’re seeing Kaede have an affect on the plot by going with Ann instead of Ryuji, leave any predictions for any other possible changes you think could happen, whether they be minor or major. Okay, bye bye.


End file.
